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Switch – OVA #1

Brief summary: Hal, an agent from the Narcotics Control Department, is undercover (as Reiji) in an illicit drug ring called Asaya, which is headed by Kuzuya. Kuzuya is about to meet up with the leader of another group for a possible merger. Hal is initially an inside informant but quickly raises his status by risking his life for Kuzuya. Thanks to the staged attack where someone attempted to stab Kuzuya but Hal steps in and gets “stabbed” instead.

The so-called stabber was a fellow agent, Kai (who seems to be quite attached to Hal). Impressed by Hal’s “loyalty” and the very reliable information he shares for the business, Kuzuya takes him to their hideout and gives him a spare key. Hal gets a new lead; learns that Kuzuya is basically contacting 2 people with regard to Asaya’s planned merger with the Chinese mafia group known as Kotetsu. Kuzuya keeps in touch with a drug broker and a botanical garden employee. The agents learn that Kitagishi is the botanical guy. Kai goes undercover (as Kousaka) as an assistant in Kitagishi’s botanical place. Kai meets a guy named Kagura who also works for Kitagishi. Kai finds out about a rare species of black orchids, which may be relevant to the case. Kai later sneaks away from his late night shift and finds a hidden key belonging to Kitagishi. We later learn that Kitagishi is trying to trick Kuzuya by attempting to deal directly with Kotetsu instead. But before Kitagishi can contact anyone, he gets killed by someone. Hal secretly meets up with Kai, with Kai noting he wants to be useful so he’d do anything Hal asks, to which Hal responds “What if I told you to die?” But before Kai can say anything, Hal disappears. Later, while snooping around the hideout, Hal gets a phone call from someone with a creepy, distorted voice who apparently knows that Hal is an agent, asking if the key to the “switch” is doing well. Hal is quite shocked to hear this. As he leaves the place, we see that he’s being tailed by someone. On the other side, as Kai is about to attempt to use the key he found earlier, we find that he has a stalker too. Uh-oh.

ON A SIDE NOTE… Ahem, well… I mainly watched this OVA because I thought the premise was interesting, plus its genre fits my taste. I have not read the manga at all, so I have no clue regarding the details of what it’s about. Anyway, here’s a quick overview of the synopsis: “Two newbies at the Narcotic Control Department in Japan, Hal and Kai, struggle against: drug dealers, gangs, murderers, psychopaths, mysterious organizations, and mad people in general. The gentle and caring one of the group, Kai, who has problems of his own, has the tendency of turning into a lethal killing machine in certain scenarios. The way he acts changes like that of a “switch”. As the two do their job, answers of what is behind Kai’s strange behavior and who exactly he is, is revealed.” (from ANN)

I think this is gonna be a two-part OVA, with the second one to be released on February 2009.

Quick Impression: Nice OP [“Find out” by MIRANOSAND] and ED [“Your Hand” by MIRANOSAND]. I really like it, especially the ED. Generally, I thought the animation was alright. Moving on, could the intro be some sort of premonition of things to come? And for some reason, Kai reminds me of Gau from Nabari no Ou since I think he worries too much about Hal… which would then make Hal = Raikou (although Hal’s character is much different from Raikou). On another note, I think that Kagura guy might know something about the case Hal and Kai are working on.

Switch? Huh? What? Based on the synopsis, I assume that “switch” refers to Kai having some kind of split personality… Of course, I’m just guessing here. I don’t feel like picking up the manga (which recently ended) just for that sole reason. With merely 2 OVA episodes in the works, I don’t think we’ll get much of a detailed explanation either. Although we might get some answers, I think they’ll focus more on the resolution of the case instead. Anyway, I’m curious enough to watch the second OVA once the subs are out. I don’t think I’d mind if they make more than two either. I might check out the manga later, though, after OVA #2 airs.

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6 Responses

I’ve been waiting for weeks now for someone to blog the first OVA of switch. I’m glad you did ^^ It’s too bad it’s just a 2-part OVA, there’s enough potential and material (I believe) on this one that could have been better in a 12/13 episode-series.

Hal reminds me SOO much of Light (Death Note) perhaps because of his character design and demeanor. The premise of the story is very interesting and the dynamics between Hal and Kai intrigues me. I wonder if the first scene will really happen in the story or it’s just something that Kai perhaps conjured in his mind. OVerall, this is a very nice OVA. It looks good and modern, the characters look great (everyone here looks gorgeous!) and stylish. I can’t wait for the next one to come out ^^

That switch theory you got there is a good guess, but I also wouldn’t know, i haven’t read the manga and I’m too lazy to read it like yourself ^^;

@ eipu: Thanks! I’m also definitely covering OVA #2 once it’s out. Considering the premise for this series, I do agree that they have enough material to go for a 12/13-episode series. Who knows? Maybe they’re just kind of “testing the waters” – if they get a positive response from viewers, they might make a series out of it, plus the manga series is now completed. ^_^

Hal somewhat reminded me of Nomiya from H&C, probably because of the glasses and a bit of the hairstyle. And yeah, everyone here looks gorgeous and stylish.

Switch is an amazing manga (I’ve read up to book six, which is all that is out in English) but I’m a little disappointed with the OVA so far.I know what’s going on because I’ve read the mangas, but the OVA doesn’t explain anything very much at all.

The manga has only just gotten to the point where Kai’s problems have been explained a little bit, but the plot is surely starting to thicken with it. I hope the OVA covers some stuff, cause I’m looking forwards to the rest of it, but I really wish they’d make an anime out of it. I love the series, and the OVA could still do justice to it… Hopefully.

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This is mainly an anime blog with series overviews, first impressions, reviews, some episode summaries, with a hint of personal thoughts and a few random babbles on manga, music, etc. that I've come across.